GEMS FROM GENESIS
A 40-day Daily Devotional
from the First Book of the Bible
Conderidge Smith
Gems from Genesis
By Conderidge Smith
Copyright 2012 Conderidge Smith
Smashwords Edition
Smashwords Edition, License Notes
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author, and thank you for your support. Please see end of book to schedule signings or speaking engagements.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form whatsoever without express written permission by the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
Cover design by Conderidge Smith.
DEDICATION
This book is dedicated to busy people who deeply desire to know, understand, and apply the critical connection between the ancient Scriptures of the Christian churches and their modern lives but who simply do not have the time to critically consider and exegetically examine the Bible for themselves. May these gems from Genesis provide the material medium for you to take the light of the Lord Jesus Christ and shine it off of you and onto the world!
This book is also dedicated to you, Joshua. Keep smiling. Keep shining. Keep spelling well and doing a great job on math. God loves you, and I love you. You are daddy’s gem forever.
PREFACE: WHY “GEMS”?
What is a gem? According to the very ancient, paper-bound Webster’s Dictionary, a gem is “anything of small size, expressed within brief limits, which is regarded as a gem on account of its beauty or value, as a small picture, a verse of poetry, a witty or wise saying”. According to the very modern, internet-accessed WordNet dictionary, a gem is “a precious stone incorporated into a piece of jewelry”. Combine the old with the new, and thereby you will conceive of what I mean by “gem” from Genesis; a gem from Genesis is a curt explanation of either a verse or verses of the first book of the Bible, lovingly laid within the literary context of the whole book of Genesis in specific and whole Protestant canon of Christian Scripture in general.
But why “gems” from Genesis, and not “giant stones” instead? Giant stones are heavier, harder to move, and thus to maneuver require more time. And who has more time? Not you.
With that in mind, I have written Gems from Genesis for you---you who want, and need, a word from the LORD right now; you who want to “hear from Heaven” on a daily basis you who want to read some Bible daily, even if it only a verse, but have limited time to invest in the reading and researching of the Bible. Here are precious gems, jeweled from Genesis, petite, packed, and portable, ready for you to read in your bed, on your toilet, at your desk, on your couch, at the bus stop, on the train, and wherever else the Lord leads you to learn. Handle them as you would fine jewelry; hold them in your hand---and in your heart. Delve into this daily devotional on a daily basis, and display its worth to the world on the thus beautified body of your now Bible-bearing thoughts, words, and actions as you wear these Gems from Genesis.